Wraith watched Sarin and Vangar battle each other with swords in their mouths. Vangar stopped after about thirty minutes, but Sarin kept on fighting. Without Vangar, she swung the sword against a giant chunk of crystal that jutted out from the ground.
Although Wraith wasn't enthusiastic about letting her keep fighting in such a way, he let her keep swinging. When he saw that her mouth was bleeding, he decided that it was enough and stepped in.
“Sarin, there's no point in you doing this. Whatever advantage you gain in range is negated by the loss of speed and strength. All you'll get are bloody gums and a knotted jaw.”
“Why? Your fangs are more efficient than the sword. I know you want to get stronger, but this isn't the way to go about it.”
“It's not your responsibility to protect everyone. That's my job. You don't have to worry about everything. I told you that we'll get some help from the werewolves. Hopefully you'll have bodies that can easily adapt to battle and aren't limited. Besides, even if I do die, I'll be back after a while.”
Wraith chuckled. “You need to realize that no matter how strong you become, there will always be someone stronger. I've noticed that you take things much more seriously than Vangar does. Your problem is that you think too much. If you adjust your way of thinking, you'll live a happier life?”
“I'm trying to say that sometimes you have to accept that some things are the way they are. Nothing you do will change the fact that right now you're a wolf, so fight like one. If I do die, it won't be because you're weak, but because the enemy is strong. As long as you give it your all and use your full potential, I'll be able to die with a smile on my face. Of course I'll come back with that same smile too, and we'll just have to work a little bit harder. And remember, unlike your body your mind is free from all constraints. Use that smart head of yours in battle. Hone your instincts and your intellect. You're going to need it if you're to be my right-hand man, or should I say woman.”
Sarin whipped her head towards him, her eyes wide with shock and disbelief.
“Andvare is a craftsman and a strong warrior, but his lightheartedness isn't suited for the task. Vangar is a powerful warrior to be sure, but he's not cut out to be a leader. I trust that you can make good decisions for the pack. So do you accept?”
While he was comforting and stroking Sarin, he glanced over to see if Vangar was similarly burdened with such problems. When he caught his eyes, he had a sense that something was wrong. In the depths of Vangar's pupils, there was a darkness that glared out at him. Though it made him uneasy, he shrugged it off, attributing it to the same cause of Sarin's grief. I suppose he hasn't gotten over losing his family either.
The week passed quickly for Wraith. When he wasn't practising manipulating Mana, he was either off hunting with his pack or implementing what he had learnt during the first test. When fighting as a group, if they didn't fight together as one, then instead of being stronger than the sum of the individual parts, they were considerably weaker.
There was an art to warfare that required practice, trust, and the unity of the entire group. Before, the battles were a free-for-all. Everyone would attack whatever opening was shown, unaware of what the other was doing.
When fighting as a group, they had to keep one eye on the enemy and one on their allies. While the role of directing his pack fell to Wraith, he couldn't fight and order his pack-mates properly at the same time. That was part of the reason why he gave Sarin more responsibility. He needed someone to help guide his pack to victory.
When there were more members to his pack, this would be considerably more important. As such, it was best to raise Sarin's leadership abilities early on. They settled on using Sarin and Vangar to draw an enemy's attention, while Wraith and Andvare would deal most of the damage.
Sarin and Vangar were among the fastest in their group, whereas Wraith and Andvare had the greatest mobility and offence For the time being, that was the basic set-up they used in battle. When their pack had more people, they would be able to adjust the formation to be more efficient.
With all the things he needed to do, Wraith managed to keep himself busy in anticipation of the upcoming test. The one thing he didn't do was craft items. This was due to the cap on the agility stat. Besides raising speed and the reflexes of the player, it was important in crafting items. Since it was set to ten, there was a noticeable drop in quality and experience gained. Since he didn't want to waste materials, he had to wait until he left the dungeon.
Soon the day of the final test came, and Wraith was ready. “If it's anything like the last test, we'll be gone for a week or two. We'll meet up back at your house, so I suppose you can work on your smithing in our absence.”
“Alright. I'm one good sword away from intermediate level two anyway. Oh, I almost forgot.” Andvare rummaged through his pack and pulled out a pair of metal gauntlets. “I don't know if you'll need it, but there's no harm having it on hand. Hah! Having it on hand.” He laughed at the little pun he made. “It was hard making one that you could use, so it's not a high-level item. I tried making some for Sarin and Vangar as well, but it was too clunky.”
“I appreciate the gesture Andvare. Identify.”
Andvare's Metal Gauntlets
Defence: 5
Attack: 2-4
Crafted by a good blacksmith, the gauntlets provide protection as well as adding to attack. Strangely enough, the blacksmith purposefully made a low-quality item.
Requirements: STR 5+, AGI 5+
Although at his level Andvare could make much better items, the gauntlets were made to suit players just starting out in Royal Road. It was then that Wraith realized how his altered stats would affect the armour and weapons he could equip. Fortunately he didn't use any real weapons to fight with, but the limit on strength made it impossible to wear heavy and certain leather armours.
Oh well, nothing I can do about it now. Unfortunately he couldn't equip it due to the dungeon's restriction. Since it seemed as if he worked quite hard at crafting it, Wraith didn't say anything of the sort, and accepted the gift gratefully.
He didn't have time to give it much thought, since all of a sudden he was teleported away. When he took a look at his surroundings, he saw that he was inside a cavern. He was standing on a large circular rock in the middle of the cavern. It was about twenty metres in diameter and surrounded by a deep chasm. There were three fragile-looking bridges made of stone that attached the rock to three caves on the side of the cavern. The bridges were interspersed evenly and were about thirty metres in length.
As he peered over the edge of the rock, he saw that it was supported by a pillar that pushed up against the centre. It seemed to be a precarious situation, which was made even worse by the enormous pool of lava just underneath. He started to wonder what this test entailed, when a system message popped up.
For the second round of testing, the objective is to survive the full length of the test. In three minutes, the bridges will separate from the disk you currently stand on. Keep in mind that falling into the lava will not result in death, but in a forcible ejection from the dungeon back to the continent of Versailles. Also note that only one person can be off the disk at a time. Should more than one person attempt to use the bridges simultaneously, even if they are different all the bridges will collapse. Logging out will replace your avatar with an equal weight. The maximum log-out time is four continuous hours. Glowing circles will appear on the places each person must stand on.
At the appearance of the circles, Wraith, Sarin and Vangar took their places between each of the bridges. When the three minutes were up, the bridges separated from the disk. Unlike what he expected, it didn't break off from the edge to leave a circular stone, but rather broke off well inside the edge of the disk and extended the bridge by about five metres.
Wraith didn't expect that this would be the test. It seemed too...easy. If all he had to do was balance on the disk until the test ended then he could breeze through it with ease. As expected, it was an easy challenge to overcome.
For seven days he had to sit still in the same spot. When he logged out, it was only for fifteen minutes at most. He would wolf down food, use the facilities, and then jump back into the capsule. Since they were balanced so precariously, they had someone on watch at all times. This way, two people could sleep soundly while one was looking out for them.
The most unnerving part of the challenge was how it didn't give a time limit. There was no way to know when the test was going to end. For five days, all Wraith could do was wait patiently for something to occur.
On the sixth day, something did happen. The stone he was standing on started to crumble. The edges of the stone started to fall away into the lava. Wraith cursed at the sight. It wasn't a big piece, in fact it was less than a fist of stone that fell off.
It wasn't enough to unbalance the stone completely, but it signalled future crumbling of the stone. Every minute after that, a little bit of stone would fall away. By three days time, enough had fallen away that the stone which was once twenty metre in diameter, shrunk to fourteen.
The circles where they stood on were long since gone, which forced them to move inwards. Every hour that passed made things a little more frightening and unnerving. In the darkness of the cave, the only illumination was the lava that painted the walls orange. The dark edges of the stone stood out in sharp contrast to the light, highlighting where it had broken off. As Wraith and his pack listened to the splashes of stone falling in lava, their heartbeats quickened with fear.
He was ashamed to admit that thoughts of running across the bridge had crossed his mind. Although he wouldn't have even considered it a few days ago, seeing the stone shrink away intensified the terror of falling into the lava. In two days time, enough of the stone would break away to make escape impossible.
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Jacob looked on the monitor to see how the different parties were faring. There were sixty parties of three in total, and one group of four. In the first six days there were only fourteen people that tried to escape via the bridge.
It wasn't terribly high, but it meant there were fourteen people less to consider. When the stone started crumbling out from under them, the number of people that tried to escape rose quickly. What the players didn't know was that escaping and leaving party members behind was considered a failure. In Jacob's eyes, it was a well-crafted trial. Unfortunately, not everyone saw things the same way.
“Sir, I know you wanted to test teamwork and unity, but how will this accomplish that? There doesn't seem to be a defined way of measuring teamwork in this test.” It was Sam that asked this. He was the same bespectacled worker that questioned Jacob's motives in bringing Wraith as a candidate.
Jacob sighed heavily, feeling a migraine forming behind his eyes. “Let me ask you a question in return, does there exist a definitive scale for grading teamwork? No. The best we can hope for is to see who works better at it than others.”
“I'm sorry sir, but I still don't understand.” Being a stickler for the rules, his way of thinking was quite rigid as well. While he was good with numbers and figures, he wasn't the most creative of people. As such, Jacob had to explain the reasoning behind the test carefully.
“This test measures teamwork in a round-about sort of way. What we look for is the person that cracks last. You see, everyone has a breaking point, no exceptions. It's just that some have a lower threshold than others. In the beginning, most people stood together and balanced on the rock. They worked to find a balance, keep watch, and look out for each other. Then, the self-preservation instinct kicked in. They abandoned their party members and tried to save themselves. After all, the others were basically strangers to them, and what was at stake was their future.”
Understanding dawned on Sam's face as Jacob explained everything to him. “So when the stone started crumbling, it jump-started that instinct.”
“Precisely. The more the stone crumbles, the further away the bridge gets from them. When they see their only hope of escape going out of their reach, the pressure builds and they crack under it. When the first member of the party leaves, the other two are put under even more pressure, and one soon follows suit. Eventually, only one member from each party is left behind. From the looks of things, it'll only take one more day.”
“But doesn't that put Wraith at an advantage? I mean, there's no penalty for abandoning his teammates. On the contrary, they would happily sacrifice themselves for him.”
“You do remember that it doesn't really matter one way or another, right? In any case, it would actually be harder for Wraith to do that. After all, he does seem to have a sense of honour. In this test, he has a big advantage.”
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“No.” It was a firm, resolute reply. Sarin was correct in everything she said, but he couldn't bring himself to sacrifice them for his sake. If he did it, he may gain victory in the trial, but he would lose something far more precious. No matter what they may say, the trust Sarin and Vangar held in Wraith would be diminished. For the rest of their lives, the act of sending them into a fiery pit would forever linger between them, poisoning their relationship.
Although it wasn't the easy way out, Wraith would stay on the platform for as long as possible. Until the pillar that supported the platform broke and fell into the pit of lava, he would remain with his pack.
With each day that passed, the stone grew smaller and smaller. After two days the diameter of the circle had been cut by half. By the end of the next day, Wraith could almost reach out and touch his other pack-mates.
The crumbling had accelerated to the point that in the two weeks he had been in the cavern, the once twenty metre wide circle had shrunk to barely a tenth of it's size. At that point, Wraith didn't log-out for fear of upsetting the balance. He couldn't get any sleep either, as there wasn't the space nor the stability to do so.
They were all standing almost on top of each other. Wraith could stand upright, so he didn't take up much space, but Sarin and Vangar couldn't do so easily. It was uncomfortable and somewhat difficult, but it was the only way to avoid falling in. Were they to stand on all fours, they would need a platform three times the size of the one they were standing on. To compensate for this, Wraith let them put their front paws on his shoulders.
This made it infinitely more difficult to balance on the stone. There were several times that they nearly tipped it over too far. The only reason they could stand like that for so long was because of the qualities of Royal Road. Since they had a virtual body, there was no such thing as muscle failure based on the typical limits of the human body.
Even if he stood in the same spot for days on end, his mind would become dull and clouded, but all he would feel was a dull ache and a slow consistent burn in his legs. They would not however cramp, seize up, or spasm. As long as his stamina and satiety bar was filled, his muscles wouldn't fail him.
It was one of the key selling points for Royal Road. As long someone had a functioning brain, they weren't limited by the limits of their physical bodies. Instead they could toe the line between the sense of reality and the wonder of the impossible.
In Royal Road, a ninety year old man and a twenty-two year old athlete could feasibly run the same distance in the same amount of time, so long as their stats were identical. To make things a bit more challenging, the developers didn't erase the limits, but greatly extended them instead.
This was the purpose of the stamina bar. If it dropped to zero he would immediately drop to the ground like a puppet with its strings cut. Unfortunately for Wraith, since he couldn't rest in that position, he and his pack had to rely on stamina potions that he had brewed before coming to the test.
They were expensive, coming at about one gold a bottle. While he was hoping to save it for a protracted boss fight, he had no choice but to use it on himself and his pack.
Yet while his physical state remained constant, his mental state was terrible. It took all he had to simply keep his eyes open. Though he ate rye bread in-game, that only filled his satiety bar. His real body didn't get any food for about a day, which contributed to his fatigue and gave him a gnawing hunger in the pit of his stomach. Sleep-deprived and starved, he was almost ready to throw in the towel.
He had been pushed to his limits. Although he would keep on standing if he could, he wasn't able to stand up anymore. At any moment, he was about to pass out and plummet into the fiery pit. As he was about to step off the ledge and fall in, he was teleported out of the cavern.
After standing on an uneven surface for days on end, feeling the solid ground beneath his feet was enough to make him fall over in relief. They were back in Andvare's house, since it was where they initially teleported from.
Congratulations, you have passed the second test. You will have eleven days to rest and look for valuable items, before the final trial begins. The upcoming test is a pure-combat test, in a tournament-styled series of matches. With locked stats and weapons, preparation is not required. Although it will be to the death, losing the fight will not result in any penalties whatsoever, including loss of skill experience or items.
Royal Road is the home of this novel. Visit there to read the original and support the author.
“We're alive?” Wraith almost couldn't believe that they had made it back in one piece. He was almost certain that they were going to fall head-first into the lava. He was so exhausted that he barely had any time to read the system message before collapsing on the floor and falling into a deep slumber.
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Immediately after waking up, Wraith promptly logged out to have a long-awaited meal. After filling his stomach, he returned to Royal Road. Because of his exhaustion, he had spent a whole day sleeping. Since there wasn't much time left, he figured he would make the trip to the treasury and armoury that was promised to him. Besides items for him, it could also help with the quest that was given to him.
Andvare soon met up with him, and took him to where the treasures of the city were held. Sarin and Vangar were left behind, since they were still tired. “So is it really okay to give me full access to your riches?”
“Well given that you took us out of soul-crushing misery and removed a curse that has haunted us for millennia, it's the least we could do.”
“You know it was Loki that did the hard part. All I did was help out a bit.”
“I'd say it was more than a bit, and if you weren't there, Loki couldn't have done anything to help us. Besides, we doubt you planned to clear us out completely. And even if you did have deep pockets to store it all, most of it was gathering dust anyway.”
“I'll make sure to restrain myself then.”
Within a few minutes, they had arrived at a gleaming silver tower. It was conical and stretched two stories up into the air. The only feature was a metal door, sealed by magic. “Looks kinda small to hold the cities valuables.”
Andvare chuckled. “Appearances can be deceptive.” When he unsealed the door with a drop of his blood and an incantation, the door swung open to reveal a winding staircase leading downwards.
After about two minutes of walking down, the stairs ended at another giant door. Like the other door that was barred by magical seals, this one required a magical key to open it up. “This door here is locked by a specific set of Mana waves. It transmits the Mana from the body, through the crystal key and into the keyhole. Unless you have access, it's almost impossible to open.”
“Almost?”
“Well nothing is really impenetrable. If you really wanted to break in, it would cost a lot of gold and resources. Of course at that point you wouldn't need to break in since you already had more gold than was in here.”
The door opened up into a large room. The floor, ceiling and walls were covered by a layer of steel, forming a giant metallic cube. Each of the sides were about thirty metres in length, and from edge to edge, the room was covered with riches. In some places it was piled so high that it almost reached the ceiling.
“Andvare?”
“Yeah?”
“When was the last time this place was cleaned or organized?”
“About a thousand years ago, but it's not that bad a mess. Armour and weapons are on the left and precious jewels and metals are on the right...I think.”
Judging from the inch of dust that covered the treasures, Andvare wasn't exaggerating. “So how exactly do I figure out what's good and bad here?”
“You've got the identification skill don't you? Why don't you just use that?”
“You mean besides the fact that it would take me a full year to get through it all?”
“Ah, I see your point.”
Grumbling under his breath, Wraith started rummaging through the items. “So you said help myself, but what's the amount of stuff I can take without seeming too greedy?”
“Well, I would say that a cart's full of riches is fairly small.”
“So as much as I can carry in my bags then.” It would be much less than what Andvare suggested, but Wraith didn't want to come off as being greedy. While he would temporarily become rich, his relationship with the Dvergar would be soured. Since Andvare was held in high regard by his race and that Wraith would likely have more dealings with them, he couldn't afford to raid the treasury.
Instead of wasting his time looking over armour he couldn't use, Wraith started gathering up all the rings, bracelets and necklaces he could find. “Hey Andvare...” He trailed off calling Andvare for assistance, since he was no longer there. Assuming that Andvare had left him to search the treasury by himself, he dove back into the pile.
It hadn't even been fifteen minutes since Andvare left when he showed up again, with some friends in tow. “This isn't a one-man job, and we need to clean this place out anyway. Just tell us what we're looking for.”
“Well, forget about the armour and focus on finding accessories instead. Also, can you gather up any crafting materials? Specifically those related to tailoring and alchemy.” With about twenty-five volunteers, they quickly sifted through the items in the room.
As they pulled out the rings and accessories that Wraith was looking for, the pile of items Wraith was interested in soon grew immensely. With all the people helping him, Wraith was able to gather up all the accessories and crafting material within two days.
Since their work was done, the Dvergar left the treasury to Wraith. For the next seven days, Wraith spent every waking moment identifying the objects. As one would expect, it got boring really quickly. There was nothing interesting about saying “identify,” thousands of times in a row while sitting down.
He first went through the rings, trying to find the ten best ones available. About thirty percent of all the rings were basic Mana rings that increased Mana regen by ten percent. After tossing away those rings, he had to find the ten best rings in the pile.
Eventually he managed to sort them out. There were four different types of rings that he found.
Ring of the Swift Hunter
Durability: 30/30
Made for and unmatched hunter, this ring is magically imbued with the spirit of a fleeing deer.
Equip: +30 AGI, +15% Hp Regen
Restriction: +200 AGI, +100 VIT
Ring of the Almighty Sage
Durability: 30/30
Crafted by a Dvergar sage who was in tune with the magical elements, this ring is filled with an ancient magical essence.
Equip: +50 WIS, +20% Mana Regen, Magic-related skills rise 15% faster
Restriction: +100 INT, +100 WIS
Archmage's Ring
Durability: 30/30
Crafted to raise the offensive capabilities of mages in an era of chaos, the Archmage Cardal crafted the ring using arcane methods that have been long since forgotten.
Equip: +50 INT, +25% Mana Regen, 5% of all Magical Damage is reduced and absorbed as Mana
Restriction: +100 INT, +100 WIS, +3000 Mana
Finely crafted Mana Ring
Durability: 30/30
Unlike other Mana rings that are rare in their own right, this ring was worked on to be far superior It is invaluable for mages, priests or shamans.
Equip: +30% Mana Regen
Restriction: +100 INT, +100 WIS
He had four finely crafted Mana rings, and two of each of the other ones. Although there were likely other rings in the world that could do a lot more for him, the ones had right now were still top-tier. After sorting through the rings, he looked at necklaces. After looking through them, he settled on a torc, which was an ancient type of neck-wear.
White Dragonscale Torc
Durability: 70/70
Made from the scales of a mighty white dragon, the choker is lightweight, yet can stop a mortal blow from slashing the throat. It also contains a sliver of the powers of the original dragon, which is known for wisdom that surpasses others of its kind, and an immense magical prowess. Written in Draconian runes, the true powers are locked to most mortals.
Equip: Unknown
Restriction: Must have a class that understands the writings of beasts and monsters
Along with his ability to understand the speech of animals and monsters, his race also gave him the gift on understanding the written languages as well. As he stared at the runes, they rearranged themselves to form words in English. It took five minutes for it to happen, so it wasn't a terribly convenient ability.
“Fangs that crush mountains, claws that shred the sea. From the spirit born from the divine, let the aether rise and flow once more.” It was a small chant that ran across the length of the necklace, but one that was impossible to guess.
White Dragonscale Torc
Durability: 70/70
Made from the scales of a mighty white dragon, the choker is lightweight, yet can stop a mortal blow from slashing the throat. It also contains a sliver of the powers of the original dragon, which is known for wisdom that surpasses others of its kind, and an immense magical prowess. Written in Draconian runes, the true powers are locked to most mortals.
Equip: +25 WIS, +25 INT, +5% Mana Regen, +15% to all magical resistances, +500 Mana (over time, the properties may change)
Restriction: No level or stat restriction, but is permanently bound to your avatar.
It was uncertain whether it should be worn or not. While it had incredible properties, Wraith was hesitant to put it on and keep it on him forever. However, since it said that the properties may change, Wraith decided to take a chance and keep it. After all, necklaces were quite rare in Royal Road anyway.
After he had the necklace, he looked at the other accessories. There were things he hadn't even know to exist in Royal Road. In particular, he noted the circlet and the arm rings. The circlet was made of what appeared to be braided strands of a dark-red metal, with a crescent moon in the centre of the area that would rest on the forehead.
Circlet of Val'Khan
Durability: 70/70
Worn by a prince of an ancient kingdom, the circlet was said to be made from the drops of moonlight that fell to earth. It was said that after being betrayed and slaughtered by his younger brother, the circlet became dyed in his blood and his dying fury.
Equip: +50 Killing Intent, +20 END, Hp Regen +30%. When Max. Hp falls below 25%, all stats increase by 5% and Hp Regen increases by an additional 10%.
Restriction: +100 Killing Intent, +50 END
It was a rare item that he hadn't expected to find. Like the choker, it was something that the Dvergar had collected when they were still living with the rest of the world. Because it was an ancient item, it had properties that were rare and unique.
The last types of items that he looked for were bracelets and arm rings. His scouring revealed a pair of arm rings and bracelets.
Twin Cuffs of Argoth
Defence: 10
Durability: 60/60
The two cuffs were worn together as not only an accessory, but as a type of armour for those who wore cloth instead of leather and metal.
Equip: +25 END, +20 AGI, +5% of a Critical Hit. When both cuffs are worn together, Max Hp increases by 200
Restriction: Warrior class, +150 AGI, +50 END
Bands of the Battlemage
Durability: 40/40
Unlike iron that hampers magical ability, these arm rings are made from pure mithril. As well as amplifying magical ability, it aids in physical combat as well. Although originally designed for a spell-sword, both warrior and mage classes can greatly benefit from them.
Equip: +15 END, +10 AGI, +15 INT, +10 WIS. When both cuffs are worn together, all magic-related skills use 15% less Mana.
Restriction: +100 INT, +100 WIS, +100 AGI, +50 END
The arm rings and the cuffs were the final pieces of armour he needed. With them, he was finally outfitted as a powerful warrior, although he couldn't fight properly just yet. Normally such items could only be worn by players at least twice the level of him. The reason why he could use them was due to his inflated stats.
In some ways Wraith was quite lucky. Most players wouldn't have been able to receive such items, or at least not yet. Since the dungeon wasn't yet discovered, Wraith and the other candidates were able to pick the place clean of any valuables. Even if another candidate had found the city of the Dvergar, they wouldn't have been granted access to the treasury since they couldn't have removed the curse.
It was as if there was a guardian angel looking out for him. For all the failings of his race and class, it was only fair that he have the best items. After all, in this game Wraith was considered evil and a villain by most people. There's no such thing as a villain or demon king without wealth, power and luxuries. It's one of the things that make up for the standing alone.
After putting the accessories away in his pack, he went to look at the crafting materials. Compared to blacksmithing and sculpting, there weren't many items for tailoring and alchemy. However, it was still much more than would fit in his bag. Even the new bag that Andvare got for him was too small, and it had space for one hundred kilograms worth of items while reducing the weight by ninety percent.
He first took all the strange items that could be used for alchemy. This included dried wood and rare plants, as well as unique minerals and substances. He then took the finest quality fabrics for tailoring.
There was fine silk and plant fabrics, as well as spools of thread from strange and mysterious sources. There was metal wire as soft and smooth as silk, string made from a demon's sinews, thread from the down of an angel, fibres from the tree of life, and the gossamer strands of a unicorn's mane.
He also helped himself to some gold. After leaving the treasury, his pockets were considerably heavier. With almost five thousand gold coins and a bag filled to the brim with accessories and crafting items, he walked back to Andvare's house.
He was quite pleased with how things turned out. The items he got for himself would also be of use for the quest given at the start of the test. Besides that, he also reached intermediate level one in identification. While by itself it was a somewhat useless skill for most warriors, it allowed him to master the true insight skill which gave him knowledge on potion-making and in alchemy.
Although the process of raising the skill was so boring that it made him want to rip his own face off, the results were well worth the effort.
While there was still the issue of the armour and accessories unequipping themselves every time he transformed, he was certain he could find a craftsman or an enchanter to fix that problem. Ever since his stats underwent that massive change, he realized how important they would be to him. He couldn't afford to turn down even the slightest bit of extra damage or defense.
If worst came to worst he could even fight in his normal body. The advantages gained from armour and the accessories far outweighed those gained from his wolf-form. If he had time he would have went around the city seeking to find someone that could help. The Dvergar were excellent craftsmen, so they would have likely given him some help in that area. Since that option wasn't available to him anymore, he was forced to put it out of his mind and think on other matters.
While he made his way to Andvare's place, he had some time to think. After just a few more days, the testing would be over. It filled him with both excitement and apprehension. In someways it was similar to taking the year-end exams. Once it was over with, everything will have ended. Whether it would be for good or bad, he had no idea.
He had made it so far in the testing, that instead of filling him with confidence it filled him with dread. He had invested so much of his time and energy into this that not passing would be devastating.
Sure he would recover and pick up the pieces of his life, but it would leave him with very few options. He was already accepted into university, but that would mean he would have to put Royal Road on hold. Although he could become a dark gamer, he didn't know if he had the mettle to make money while playing, and he couldn't afford the capsule to start playing. While there may have been other legitimate jobs that involved playing on Royal Road, they would either require high credentials, or place him under intense scrutiny while he played the game.
This is my last and only chance. There's no pressure and nothing to worry about. If you fail, it's just the end of this life in Royal Road and the death of hope, joy, and excitement. One thing Wraith wasn't, was an optimist.
Some people would say that he was cynical and a downer, but he was just a realist. The odds were stacked against him, and he didn't know how he compared to the other candidates. They likely played longer, giving them more combat experience. The one small hope he held was that they were largely reliant on their skills rather than their own ability.
Though many players picked up actual combat ability after playing Royal Road for so long, many people (especially mages) only relied on their skills. They counted on their weapon-skills to correct their mistakes, and relied on special attacks to fight the enemy with.
Unlike the swordsmen that would hack and slash without any thought, Wraith was controlled and knowledgeable when it came to fighting bare-handed. Victory may not be guaranteed to him, but neither was it that far out of reach.
If he worked a little bit harder for just a little bit longer, the path to his dreams would open up before him. With his heart and mind at ease, he was ready for the final trial that would end up shaping the next several years of his life.
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